These are “red 'level” direct action methods/tactics which means participants risk arrest. These methods/tactics may also be considered violent forms of direct action by some activists (and/or members of the public and/or police etc.).
Collecting footage
Activists may choose to enter facilities under the cover of darkness to collect footage for awareness-raising campaigns, cruelty investigations or other breaches of laws and regulations. This is “red level” direct action.
Items needed
1) Black clothing including clothing/accessories to cover tattoos etc.
2) Activist tool kit (red level)
3) Biohazard gear (masks, gloves, booties etc.)
4) GoPro’s and other tech gear
5) Encrypted/secure USB (these cost a good bit of money but are worth it)
6) Waterproof shoes may be beneficial (i.e.: wetsuit/diving ‘shoes’)
7) Change of clothes (“normal” clothing for ride home – may not be possible to change but worth considering)
General information
Doing recon during the night and day is advisable; take note of any electric fences or other potential hazards. Rubber doormats may help protect activists from electric shock when climbing over electric fences as well as from cuts from barbed wire fences.
Consider the traffic conditions when deciding on time of action; will there be heavy peak-hour traffic?
Make a Plan B (back-up route), know the area and nearest hospital etc. in case of emergency.
Have a meeting point confirmed in case the group gets split up.
Find nearest police stations so a general idea of the response time is known/estimated.
Do not take an ‘everyday’ phone on site of action. Preferably only one person will carry a burn phone for emergencies.
Remember security measures and protocol when doing online research for recon and planning.
Know the weather forecast and plan accordingly. Do not count out a day/evening just because of bad weather. It may be beneficial (background noise, visual ‘cover’), but this needs to be considered as a group.
Remember - designate specific roles like first-aid to AG members, and AG members may want to consider other roles like lookout, driver, footage collector. AG’s will normally elect one member to carry memory cards out of the facility (out of camera). This is an arrestable role.
If AG’s choose to be around animals during these actions, it is advisable to learn about the animals and their nature and specific biosecurity concerns associated with the potential action. There is a lot of information that is publicly available online about facilities and business practices etc.
If AG’s have money to spend, it may be best spent on tech gear as there may be nothing quite as disheartening as an AG working for hours to collect footage that is entirely unusable, and not knowing that until after the action.
Do not assume that certain people will always fit certain roles. Who fits what role is something that AG’s will learn as they work together more often and share their skills and shortcomings.
Night Action
AG’s may want to practice moving as a unit in the dark, making sure the gaps between legs when walking do not cause light to catch the eyesight of others. Should AG’s walk in a single-file line or beside one another? What viewpoints are there going to be for others to see you? What “they” see is not what “you” see. Practice this and have fun with it. After all, it is just for fun…
AG’s may want to practice “rolling” their feet when walking to cause less ground disturbance, or other ways to step/walk. If anyone in your AG has been in a marching-band, they should know what “rolling feet” means (roll from heel to toe versus walking flat-footed or on tips of toes first).
Be aware of zippers, clasps, designs/labels on clothing, bags, gloves etc. that may be reflective, bright or otherwise easily seen.
Smoke Bombs
Using smoke bombs during protests, rallies and other forms of activism is something that has become popular in recent years. You can easily purchase coloured smoke bombs online from numerous vendors, and this is typically legal in most countries. Using them is typically legal, too, as long as you are over 18 years of age, although AG’s must check local laws to make sure of the legalities around using smoke bombs in public and you may need permission to do so without risking arrest.
If you/your AG members are concerned about making an online purchase for smoke bombs, you can make your own from everyday ingredients. Below is a step-by-step guide on how to make a coloured smoke bomb.Bottom of Form
*The following instructions were taken from https://www.thoughtco.com/ultimate-colored-smoke-bomb-605967 and adapted for Australian spelling.
The classic smoke bomb is a great project for the home or lab, producing lots of safe smoke, with purple flames. If you get dye and consider the shape of your creation, you can make a smoke bomb that billows clouds of brightly-coloured smoke. Adult supervision is required.
Coloured Smoke Bomb Materials
· 60 g (3 tablespoons) potassium nitrate (sold as saltpetre/saltpeter in garden supply shops)
· 40 g (2 tablespoons) sugar
· 1 teaspoon baking soda
· 60 g (3 tablespoons) powdered organic dye (such as synthetic indigo or an aniline-based dye, found in some craft & hobby shops; not common water-based dye)
· Cardboard tube (you could use a toilet paper roll or section of paper towel tube, or even a rolled/taped paper tube)
· Duct tape
· Pen or pencil
· Firework fuse (hardware, rocketry, construction, or hobby shops, or scavenge it from a firework)
· Cotton balls
· Saucepan
Make the Coloured Smoke Bomb Mixture
1. Mix 60 g potassium nitrate with 40 g sugar in a saucepan over low heat. It's a 3:2 ratio, so if you don't have grams, use three large spoonsful of potassium nitrate and two large spoonsful of sugar (3 tablespoons and 2 tablespoons, if you feel the need to be precise).
2. The sugar will caramelize and brown. Stir the mixture continuously until it resembles smooth peanut butter.
3. Remove the mixture from heat.
4. Stir in a spoonful of baking soda (a rounded teaspoon is fine). The baking soda is added to slow down the combustion when the smoke bomb is ignited.
5. Add three large spoonful’s (3 tablespoons) of powdered organic dye. Blue dye and orange dye are said to produce better results than the other colours. Stir to mix well.
6. Construct the smoke bomb while the mixture is still hot and pliable.
Assemble the Smoke Bomb
1. Fill a cardboard tube with the warm smoke bomb mixture.
2. Push a pen or pencil down into the centre of the mix (doesn't have to be all the way to the bottom but should be enough that the pen stands in the mixture). You could use a different shape, but the cylinder works really well.
3. Let the mixture harden (about an hour).
4. Remove the pen.
5. Insert a firework fuse. Push pieces of cotton balls into the hole to tamp the fuse securely inside the smoke bomb. Be sure there is fuse left outside of the tube so that you will be able to light your smoke bomb.
6. Wrap the smoke bomb with duct tape. Cover the top and bottom of the tube, too, but leave the hole area with the cotton and fuse uncovered.
7. Go outside and light your smoke bomb! You should test your creation.
Tips for Success
· The key to producing vibrant coloured smoke is using an appropriate dye. The colour is produced by vaporizing a dye from the heat of the smoke bomb, not from burning a pigment, which always produces normal smoke.
· Getting a good display also depends on the geometry of the smoke bomb. When the dye is vaporized, the pressure from combustion forces it out to produce the smoke. There needs to be enough pressure inside the smoke bomb to push the smoke out, but not too much pressure or else it will burst. This is why cardboard and tape are used. You can control the opening for the smoke. The materials are strong enough to contain a certain level of force but will rupture rather than explode if the pressure is too great.
Fireworks and the chemicals contained within them are dangerous and should always be handled with care and used with common sense. You are responsible for your own actions.
Black Bloc
The Black Bloc tactic is most well-known for being associated with anarchist-based movements and riots. Participants in Black Bloc tactics almost always dress in head-to-toe black clothing and will wear masks, gloves and other items to fully hide their identities. Many are quick to associate Black Bloc tactics with violence, and in some cases this may very well be true. However, when Black Bloc tactics are used toward buildings and other inanimate objects, the question of whether the actions used are violent or not is left to one’s own perception of violence and whether or not it can be justified. Activists that tend to align with nonviolent principles and tactics would probably want to consider the people that will suffer the most from their actions before deciding to use what may be viewed as, or actually be, violent tactics.
Sabotage/Monkeywrenching
If you were asked to think of examples of sabotage, chances are you would think of pipeline or railway sabotage. There have been numerous headlines over recent years about different pipelines being sabotaged throughout the Unites States of America, however, sabotage is certainly not a new tactic. There are (and have been) saboteurs of hunts, railways, pipelines, factories, machinery, reputations, businesses and technology amongst many other types. However, sabotaging state/federal property, or sabotaging something that could result in injury to a person or persons or to the environment can carry the risk of extremely serious charges, even terrorism in some cases. Acts of sabotage (aka monkeywrenching) are very serious and should always be treated as such, hypothetically speaking, of course. Any act of sabotage will most likely carry the risk of serious legal implications. There are some very handy resources included below:
Ecodefense: A Field Guide to Monkeywrenching (shared via The Anarchist Library)
To Dismantle a Gas Pipeline and Sell it as Scrap Metal - A Story of Yaqui Women
Brian Martin, Nonviolence versus Capitalism (London: War Resisters’ International, 2001) - Sabotage